Activator-free zinc aluminate (ZA) nanophosphor was synthesized through a sol-gel combustion route, which can be used both as a blue-emitting phosphor material and a white-emitting phosphor material, depending on the annealing temperature during synthesis. The material also has the potential to be used in optical thermometry. These fascinating color-tunable emission characteristics can be linked with the various defect centers present inside the matrix and their changes upon thermal annealing. Various defect centers, such as anionic vacancy, cationic vacancy, antisite defect, etc...

Reduced graphene oxide-magnetite hybrid aerogels attract great interest thanks to their potential applications, e.g., as magnetic actuators. However, the tendency of magnetite particles to migrate within the matrix and, ultimately, escape from the aerogel structure, remains a technological challenge. In this article we show that coating magnetite particles with polydopamine anchors them on graphene oxide defects, immobilizing the particles in the matrix and, at the same time, improving the aerogel structure...

The paper investigates microtubules lattice properties taking into consideration elastic, dipole-dipole interaction of tubulins and viscosity. A microtubule is modeled as a system of bound tubulins, forming a skewed hexagonal two-dimensional lattice. Wave frequencies and group velocities have been calculated. Calculations have been performed for various directions of wave front propagation: helix, along the protofilament, and anti-helix. Three different wave polarization directions have been considered. It has been shown that the direction of the wave polarization influences the frequency and wave group velocity values in the lattice considerably...

Modern phylogenetic studies may benefit from the analysis of complete genome sequences of various microorganisms. Evolutionary inferences based on genome-scale analysis are believed to be more accurate than the gene-based alternative. However, the computational complexity of current phylogenomic procedures, inappropriateness of standard phylogenetic tools to process genome-wide data, and lack of reliable substitution models which correlates with alignment-free phylogenomic approaches deter microbiologists from using these opportunities...

Micro/nanostructures, which are assembled from various nanosized building blocks are of great scientific interests due to their combined features in the micro- and nanometer scale. This study for the first time demonstrates that ultrasmall superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles can change the microstructure of their hydrocolloids under the action of external magnetic field. We aimed also at the establishment of the physiological temperature (39 °C) influence on the self-organization of silver and ultrasmall iron oxides nanoparticles (NPs) in hydrocolloids...

Flavonoids are a group of hydroxylated polyphenolic compounds widely distributed in the plant kingdom. Biosynthesis of these compounds involves type III PKSs, whose presence has been recently predicted in some fungal species through genome sequencing efforts. In this study, for the first time it was found that Fusaria produce flavonoids on solid YES medium. Naringenin, as the central precursor of all flavonoids, was produced at highest quantities, followed by quercetin, kaempferol, apigenin and luteolin. In plants, flavonoids are involved in the protection of cereals to a wide range of stresses, including host defense against Fusaria...

Zanthoxylum ailanthoides (ZA) has been used as folk medicines in East Asian and recently reported to have several bioactivity; however, the studies of ZA on the regulation of triacylglycerol (TG) biosynthesis have not been elucidated yet. In this study, we examined whether the methanol extract of ZA (ZA-M) could reduce oleic acid- (OA-) induced intracellular lipid accumulation and confirmed its mode of action in HepG2 cells. ZA-M was shown to promote the phosphorylation of AMPK and its upstream LKB1, followed by reduction of lipogenic gene expressions...

In Drosophila epithelial cells, apical exclusion of Bazooka/Par3 defines the position of the Zonula Adherens (ZA), which demarcates the apical and lateral membrane and allows cells to assemble into sheets. Here, we show that the small GTPase Rap1, its effector AF6/Canoe (Cno) and the Cdc42-effector Pak4/Mushroom bodies tiny (Mbt), converge in regulating epithelial morphogenesis by coupling stabilization of the Adherens Junction (AJ) protein E-Cadherin, and Bazooka retention at the ZA Furthermore, our results show that the localization of Rap1, Cno and Mbt at the ZA is interdependent, indicating their functions during ZA morphogenesis are interlinked...

Background and purpose - Outcome after ligament reconstruction or tendon repair depends on secure tendon-to-bone healing. Increased osteoclastic activity resulting in local bone loss may contribute to delayed healing of the tendon-bone interface. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of the bisphosphonate zoledronic acid (ZA) on tendon-to-bone healing. Methods - Wistar rats (n = 92) had their right Achilles tendon cut proximally, pulled through a bone tunnel in the distal tibia and sutured anteriorly...

BACKGROUND/AIM: Laser photochemotherapy is a new approach in cancer treatment using low-level laser therapy (LLLT) to enhance the effect of chemotherapy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In order to evaluate the effect of LLLT on tumor cells, HeLa cells were treated with cisplatin or zoledronic acid (ZA) followed by LLLT. Cell viability was evaluated with 2,3-bis-(2-methoxy-4-nitro-5-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium-5-carboxanilide assay. Oxidative phosphorylation and glycolysis were measured using extracellular flux analysis...

Recently, the use of the pharmacological agents strontium ranelate (SR), parathyroid hormone (1-34, PTH) and zoledronic acid (ZA) has come to prominence for the treatment of osteoporosis due to their ability to prevent bone loss in osteoporotic patients. Although much emphasis has been placed on using pharmacological agents for the prevention of disease, much less attention has been placed on which one is more effective. There is still no direct comparative study on these three drugs. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of SR, PTH, ZA on preventing ovariectomy-induced osteoporosis in rats...

OBJECTIVES: Pathogenesis of bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of the jaws (BRONJ) is not fully explained. An antiangiogenic effect of bisphosphonates (BPs) or an altered bone quality have been advocated. The aims of the present study were to analyze alveolar mandibular vascularization and bone quality in rats with BRONJ. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty-eight Sprague-Dawley rats were randomized into two groups: zoledronic acid (ZA), n = 27, and control (CTRL) n = 11...

Agriculture is currently facing unprecedented challenges: ensuring food, fiber and energy production in the face of global change, maintaining the economic performance of farmers and preserving natural resources such as biodiversity and associated key ecosystem services for sustainable agriculture. Addressing these challenges requires innovative landscape scale farming systems that account for changing economic and environmental targets. These novel agricultural systems need to be recognized, accepted and promoted by all stakeholders, including local residents, and supported by public policies...

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of preventive dental management on reducing the incidence and delaying the onset of bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (BRONJ) in patients treated with intravenous zoledronic acid (ZA). MATERIAL AND METHODS: This single-center clinical study included 255 cancer patients monitored over a 6-year period. Patients received dental treatment prior (Group A) or after (Group B) the initiation of ZA therapy. Dental treatments performed, incidence proportion (IP) and incidence rate (IR) in both groups were analyzed using significance tests...

We recently identified CXCR4 as a novel vascular marker for vessel sprouting in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tissues. Thus, CXCR4+ endothelial cells (ECs) could serve as a potential predictor for patients who may benefit from sorafenib treatment; however, the mechanism that regulates vascular CXCR4 expression in HCC remains largely unknown. Here, we revealed a large number of monocytes/macrophages (Mo/Mϕ) to be selectively enriched in the perivascular areas of CXCR4+ vessels in HCC samples. The depletion of Mo/Mϕ with gadolinium chloride (GdCl3) or zoledronic acid (ZA) treatment significantly reduced vascular CXCR4 expression in HCC tumors...

Tissue-nonspecific alkaline phosphatase (TNAP) is an important isozyme of alkaline phosphatases, which plays different pivotal roles within the human body. Most importantly, it is responsible for maintaining the balanced ratio of phosphate and inorganic pyrophosphate, thus regulates the extracellular matrix calcification during bone formation and growth. The elevated level of TNAP has been linked to vascular calcification and end-stage renal diseases. Consequently, there is a need to search for highly potent and selective inhibitors of alkaline phosphatases (APs) for treatment of disorders associated with the over-expression of APs...

Osteoporosis, a prevalent metabolic bone disorder, predisposes individuals to increased susceptibility to fractures. It is also, somewhat controversially, thought to delay or impair the regenerative response. Using high-resolution Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and small/wide-angle X-ray scattering we sought to answer the following questions: Does the molecular composition and the nano-structure in the newly regenerated bone differ between healthy and osteoporotic environments? And how do pharmacological treatments, such as bone morphogenetic protein 7 (BMP-7) alone or synergistically combined with zoledronate (ZA), alter callus composition and nano-structure in such environments? Cumulatively, on the basis of compositional and nano-structural characterizations of newly formed bone in an open-osteotomy rat model, the healing response in untreated healthy and ovariectomy-induced osteoporotic environments was fundamentally the same...

In epithelia, cells adhere to each other in a dynamic fashion, allowing the cells to change their shape and move along each other during morphogenesis. The regulation of adhesion occurs at the belt-shaped adherens junction, the zonula adherens (ZA). Formation of the ZA depends on components of the Par-atypical PKC (Par-aPKC) complex of polarity regulators. We have identified the Lin11, Isl-1, Mec-3 (LIM) protein Smallish (Smash), the orthologue of vertebrate LMO7, as a binding partner of Bazooka/Par-3 (Baz), a core component of the Par-aPKC complex...